Pay Up Runner's version
by Runner043
Summary: I didn't like the way CBS killed off Angell, so I wrote my own version of Pay Up.
1. Chapter 1

PAY UP (Runner's version) - Part 1 of 11

Okay, so CBS really ticked me off killing Angell like that!  
So, I'm re-writing Pay Up.... my way!

Cast:  
Mr. Cliff Angell (a.k.a. Mr. A) - Jess' father Jess' brothers - Josh(youngest), Jason, Jared(oldest), Jacob Gail Angell - Jess' aunt who had helped raise her after her mother died Nurse Kate - in hallway to the OR, that drew Flack & Adam's blood Nurse Amanda Wheeler - surgical R.N.  
Nurse Abigail - charge nurse for the ICU 2 un-named nurse's aid in ICU & room Nurse Zoe - graveyard nurse in ICU Dr. Susan Rawles - primary surgeon Dr. Caleb Peterson - assistant surgeon Mrs. Ruth Flack - Don Flack's mother Mr. Donald Flack, Sr - Don Flack's father

I'm going with the general storyline of the Pay Up episode, but changing the part I don't like, primarily.... Angell dying. The story picks-up after her arrival at the hospital, where Flack watches her being wheeled away.....

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

She was long out of sight and the hall beyond the doors was now empty. Surely they were in the operating room by now. All Flack could do was stare in disbelief over what had happened, not even sure of how long he'd been standing there. His daze broke by the figure of a nurse on the other side of the doors. Flack knocked on the glass. Her soft-soled hospital shoes didn't make a sound as she walked over. He had so many questions, but all he could manage was "Have they started operating yet?"  
"Not yet, sir. They're not quite ready." Nurse Kate relied so calmly. How could she be so calm? Hadn't she seen his Jess, covered in blood with a team of medical staff surrounding her, wheeled past?  
"Why not? What are they waiting for?" Flack snipped back unintentionally.  
"They're getting her stabilized while we wait for the blood bank." she said, again in such a calm voice.  
"Blood bank? You're a hospital, why don't you have enough blood here?" Flack was trying not to snip again, but his frustration was obvious.  
"Of course we have blood here. Just not enough of her type. She's ...."  
"B negative, I know" Flack said, cutting her off, knowing it was not common. "Get started" he ordered as he rolled up his sleeve, "I'm the same type."

As Nurse Kate got the needle ready, Flack pulled out his ID with his blood type on it to show her that he was B- and more importantly that he matched Angell's.  
One of the silly things they had joked about having in common, now had the potential to save her life.  
"Hey, Don." said Adam as he enters the room. Flack only offers a silent nod. "They letting you donate blood for Jessica?"  
"Yeah." He manages without removing his gaze from the floor.  
"Detective Flack is a type match." Kate offers to break the silence.  
Adam sees the B- label on the blood bag and offers a "Me, too."  
Flack's gaze of the floor is broke as he grabs Adam's shirt and offers him the donation seat next to his. "He's next." he says, looking at Kate.  
"Uh, um, well, yeah, of course I'm next." Adam replies, squirming slightly at his sudden decision to donate blood.  
After getting Adam's blood donation started, Kate picked up the phone to let the operating room staff know they can start, then turning back to Flack, "You're almost done." she offered with a gentle smile to try to make him feel good about having donated and remind him that he was helping in his own way. But her smile only reminded him of Jess.  
"That's all you're taking? You need to take more."  
"That's all, Detective." She answered.  
"No," he protested, putting up his free hand to stop her from removing the needle, "you've got to take more than that."  
Flack thought he had talked Nurse Kate into taking more because he agreed to drink orange juice and lie down for an hour, but her motives were really to keep him calm and distracted for as long as possible while the operation was going on. They both got what they wanted, and later two more of NYPD's finest from the night shift would donate as well. In addition to the "officer down" call that had gone out from dispatch, news of what had happened was hitting the tv & radio stations. 


	2. Chapter 2

PAY UP (Runner's version) - Part 2 of 11

Back at the diner, Lindsay & Stella were collecting bullets, casings, and talking trajectories. They had figured out that Angell, who had been roaming the room as she talked to Flack on the phone, had rushed over to Dunbrook at the first bullet being shot. "Angell would have done all she could to protect her charge." Said Stella.  
"Exactly, which is why the thru & thru bullet to her shoulder should be right in this area." concurred Lindsay.  
While Stella continues to search the upholstery for the missing bullet, Lindsay lights up the red beam to show where the second shooter would have stood, leading Hawkes to find blood just beyond the 50 caliber shell casings on the floor.  
"She got a second one. We've got an injured perp out there." he said.  
Stella & Lindsay remained silent, but gave each other that knowing nod that said they knew Angell would have gone down fighting.

Mac put his phone away after getting an update from Flack who was now laying down after giving blood for Jess' surgery, and worked his way over to Hawkes, now inside the truck's cab, to see what leads he may have come up with.  
Stella joins Mac near the truck's driver-side door to fill him in on what she and Lindsay have found. "We'll be finished as soon as we find that one missing bullet."  
"It's not missing, we just haven't found him yet." said Mac with his brow turn down as if still finishing the thought while rising from over the dead body of the driver that shot that bullet into Angell's shoulder.  
"You mean found 'it' yet?" Stella asked, a bit confused.  
"No,....I mean found 'him'." said Mac, now looking at Stella, his thought process now complete. "I think what we have here is a thru & thru & thru." Then he explained that because Angell had her back pressed up against Dunbrook as she pushed him down further into the seating bench to protect him, that the bullet would have gone in & out of Angell's shoulder and into Dunbrook, probably also at the shoulder. "So when we find Dunbrook, we'll find our missing bullet." he concluded.  
At this point Hawkes is finished inside the truck and it's time for everyone to head back to the lab. 


	3. Chapter 3

PAY UP (Runner's version) - Part 3 of 11

A coordinator for the hospital had done a very nice job acquiring one of the larger waiting areas for all the cops, detectives, CSIs, and family that had arrived hoping for news about Detective Angell. Even officers from the 424th where Angell had previously worked were there. Law enforcement was like one big family, and news of Angell being the officer down had spread quickly.

Amanda Wheeler was a surgical R.N. just starting her shift. She entered the scrub area before seeing if Dr.s Susan Rawles and Caleb Peterson needed anything else in the operating room as they worked on Angell. She passed Nurse Kate who was taking in the last of the donated blood.  
"Did you see all those cops out there?" Kate asked her.  
"Yeah. I hate these double-edge situations." Wheeler responded "What do you mean?"  
"Well," Wheeler gave pause to careful words, "I've seen this too many times. On one hand you're glad there's so much support for the officer and their family. But on the other hand, it just makes you sick to think of someone shooting one of NYPD's finest like this."  
Kate just nodded her head in agreement.

Dr. Rawles was in charge and literally elbow-deep in Angell's insides. She did not respond at Wheeler's question over the intercom.  
"Doctor?" a nurse asked before passing the next instrument.  
"Hmm?"  
"Nurse Wheeler." She said as she pointed to the window where they could see Wheeler inside the scrub area.  
"Doctor Rawles, do you need anything?" Wheeler asked again via the intercom.  
"Nothing but a lot more time." she said shaking her head in frustration as it had been 3 hours already.  
"It looks like half the police department is out there. Is there anything I should tell them? An update of any kind you'd like me to pass along?" she offered.  
"Hmm. Yes, I suppose they're going crazy awaiting some news. I've got one bullet hole, but 4 bullet fragment paths so far to repair." She began.

All eyes shifted to Wheeler as she and Flack walked into the waiting area. Everyone got very quiet, and some stood to their feet. "Is there anyone here not for Detective Angell? I didn't think so." she added after no one responded. "I'm Nurse Wheller," she began, then explained how the single bullet had fragmented into 4 known parts causing about 17 lacerations, and that the surgery would be at least another 2 hours.

Too bad it hadn't occurred to Flack to change his shirt, still covered in Jess' blood, or to at least roll his sleeve back down to cover the wrap on his arm fron donating blood, because Mr. Angell was now motioning him to join them in the side room that had been arraigned for the family. There he is introduced to Jess' brothers, Josh, Jason, Jared, and Justin, and her Aunt Gail. Flack preferred not only the privacy of the room, away from the larger crowd, but any chance he got to spend with Jess' dad, and in a strange way around her brothers as well, as there was a strong family resemblance. Although there was certainly plenty to talk about, time still seemed to drag by as they waited. 


	4. Chapter 4

PAY UP (Runner's version) - Part 4 of 11

It would be another 3 hours till they got word again from Nurse Wheeler who this time walked thru the waiting area directly to the side room. "Mr. Angell," she began, "your daughter is being taken to recovery now. Her surgeon will be in shortly to meet with your family." "Thank you." was all he could muster at the moment.  
"I'll go wait out...." Flack began quietly as he rose from his seat.  
"Please, Don, stay here with us." Mr. Angell interrupted. Somehow having Don there made him feel closer to his daughter, something he needed more than ever right then.  
"Are you sure? I think they only want family in here right now."  
"Yeah. I'd like you to stay." Mr. Angell is suspecting his daughter means more to Flack than just being a co-worker.  
Flack felt a little odd, but grateful to be included with Jess' family.

Everyone in the small room stood as Dr.s Rawles and Peterson came thru the door, eager to greet those that brought news they had longed for. Rawles always dreaded these meetings. Sad and upset families looking to them to be miracle workers. This time would be no different. The thru & thru to the shoulder was fairly standard procedure, although it did leave a bruise on the lung as it grazed by. It was the bullet to Angell's abdomen that had taken most of the time and both doctors skilled hands as they eventually found 5 fragments that had starburst in different directions cutting thru & landing in her intestines and organs. "19 lacerations is a lot of repair work." she said with an exhausted shaking of her head. "I feel confident about how she came thru the surgery. However, let me caution you that she is not out of the woods yet. Far from it in fact." Dr. Rawles told them as she always felt obligated to convey both sides of the picture, to give families the hope they needed to be positive for the patient's benefit, yet with the honest reality they needed to prepar themselves for whatever might happen. "She'll be in recovery for at least 2 hours before being moved to the ICU. Then you can see her." She added, knowing what would be their next question.

*note to readers: Yes, 19 is a lot, but each fragment going in & out of someone's coiled up intestines would leave muliple lacerations. 


	5. Chapter 5

PAY UP (Runner's version) - Part 5 of 11

Mr. Angell, his middle sons Josh and Jason, and Flack were the first to get to see Angell. So far though, only through the observation glass to her care unit.

Abigail was the charge nurse for the ICU, a kind older lady with a very compassionate soul. "Your name must be on the authorization list, or you don't get in," she began, "Only 2 of you at a time, and you must wash your hands before entering. And of course, don't touch anything." Her list was short, but very strongly enforced, and unfortunately came with hand washing instructions.

Although he would never want to bring any germs into her, all Flack really wanted to do was get to Jess' side and somehow make everything alright. Seeing her like that was hard and a hospital gown was a far cry from the black negligee she had promised him for that evening.

Dr. Sheldon Hawkes had tagged along to collect the bullet fragments for evidence and was actually hoping to get the inside scoop straight from the surgeon. He succeeded at both, as Dr. Rawles was doing paperwork at the ICU counter.

Angell's back arched up slowly as her heels dug into the bed, her excruciating pain obvious, and although her eyes & mouth were open as if to scream all they could hear was an odd wheezing noise followed by alarms going off. It was a terrible sight to see as they all watched through the glass. Suddenly nurses and doctors were yelling at them to get out of the way. Dr.s Hawkes & Rawles both ran past, followed by several nurses. There was a lot of talking going on, but the only clear clear words Flack could make out was "chest tube". Angell's back slowly lowered as she eventually went limp and Hawkes was obviously assisting Dr. Rawles with something, but there were too many people in the way to really see what was happening. One of the nurses came out and ushered everyone to an out-of-the-way bench. Mr. Angell just sat there with his head in his hands.

Hawkes came over bending down on one to be face-to-face with Mr. Angell as he explained how his daughter's lung had collapsed and that she couldn't breathe. "It was the bruise on the lung that caused it." Hawkes explained. "She has a chest tube in now, but re-inflating a lung is a slow process that's quite painful. That's why she's being sedated for now."

"At 4:25, Doctor." the aid said as she showed Dr. Rawles Angell's chart, "Clear breath sounds and full capacity when I checked her just fifteen minutes ago."

"That means it happened very suddenly." she replied. "Okay. Thank you"

The aid leaves the chart with Dr. Rawles who is visibly frustrated as she shakes her head.

"I wanna know why this happened!" Mr. Angell said sternly as he approached. "How could you let this happen to my little girl."

"Shh, Mr. Angell." She said, hoping to calm him down, after all, they were in the ICU. "This lung collapse happened very suddenly. There was nothing that could have been done to  
prevent it. Her vitals were being checked every 20 minutes to prevent this."

"Prevent this? You mean you knew this could happen? Did you see how much pain my daughter was in?"

"Yes, of course I did. That's why we sedated her."

Mr. Angell was just too shaken up to talk about it anymore, and Jason walked him back to the bench where Hawkes tried again to explain what had happened...the bullet grazed her lung, leaving a bruise, a weak spot they'd been watching. He understood the information, but it just didn't seem to help.

They all felt that way.


	6. Chapter 6

PAY UP (Runner's version) - Part 6 of 11

Flack wanted nothing more than to stay at Jess' side the entire time, but her being sedated made it the best time for him to be a detective for a while and help catch the guys that shot the love of his life.

*The parts of Pay Up that are the same and take place now include:  
Tracking & locating the tricked out Hummer  
Finding the IV for the injured perp that Angell tagged  
Following Dunbrook Sr. to the airport  
Catching the bad guys & rescuing Dunbrook, Jr.

*The parts of Pay Up that are different:  
We know for sure that Flack shot the perp ony because he was reaching for his gun.  
Dunbrook, Jr. has the bullet in him that went thru Angell and into his shoulder.  
An ammo stash is found. They are a 50 caliber type that are specially designed to fragment on impact.  
This is a huge deal and are eventually linked to other crimes. NYPD is glad to have these bullets off the streets.

Short chapter, I know.  
But wanted to give you a list of 'what's the same' and a 'what's different'.


	7. Chapter 7

PAY UP (Runner's version) - Part 7 of 11

"You trying to make me look bad?" Mr. Angell asks.

"Me?" Flack asks.

"Yeah." he says with a smirk, "You're here when I get here and you're still here when I leave." This was more than an observation, he wanted Flack know he realized he'd noticed how important his daughter was to him.

"Didn't mean to make it a contest." He smirks back.

"How's our girl doing today?"

"Her color is improving"

Mr. Angell nods in agreement. "That's good." He adds.

"Nurse said she might wake up today,...but she hasn't yet"

"She will, when she's ready."

"I thought I was supposed to be the patient one here." Another smirk.

Mr. Angell & Flack keep each other company most of the afternoon. Jessica being the dominant topic of conversation, of course. Flack enjoying hearing stories of when she was a little girl. Not only did it make the time go by faster, but he felt he was getting closer to her family. He learned a lot about his love that afternoon, about things that she went thru that made her into the woman he both adored yet drove him crazy with frustration sometimes.

Flack goes for coffee when Jess' oldest brother Jared arrives, after all, he doesn't want to break nurse Abigail's 'limit of 2' rule.

Mr. A & Jared pass Flack as they are leaving, "You staying, Don?"

"Yeah, I forgot my coat and Mac is gonna be by soon. I wanna talk to him before I leave."

Flack, returned his chair up next to Jess' bed. He liked to be close to her and run his fingers across the back of her hand. He even continued to fill her in on all the cases they were discovering that involved those 50c bullets. She stayed silent, be he was sure she could hear him, so he continued.

It's amazing how listening to someone breathe can become sort of, mesmerizing. Flack now found himself wondering how long it had been since he slept, or if he had slept at all since Jess had been shot. Sleep could wait, he just needed to rest his eyes for now.

It was nearly midnight when Angell's eyes flickered open. She was in pain and tried not to move, lest it make it worse. Flack was asleep in the chair beside her bed with his head leaned over on her leg and his hand cradled hers like a saucer holds a delicate tea cup. Nurse Zoe walked by her unit, catching just a slight reflection off Angell's half open eyes. Zoe does an abrupt U-turn and comes in. She starts to speak, but Angell shushes her and motions to sleeping Flack.

Zoe whispers, "Do you remember being shot?" A nod of yes. "Are you in pain?" she asks, noticing Angell's hard grip on the bed rail. Another nod. "I'll be right back."

Nurse Zoe returned with pain meds for Angell's IV, and relief came quickly. Zoe, still whispering, informs Angell that she has been in the hospital for 2 days (from Tuesday morning to late Thursday), that she has had lots of visitors, mostly police officers, and of course that "Detective Flack has been here almost the entire time. In fact, this is the first time I've seen him sleep." Zoe helps Angell with a sip of water and leaves to inform the head nurse that she is awake.

Angell strokes the side of Flack's face with her fingers till he stirs. It didn't take long. "Hey, sleep head." she says to him in a weak voice as he looks up at her.

"You're awake. Oh, sweetheart, you're finally awake." he said rising from his chair to lean over her and brushed her cheek gently.

Jess manages a little smile back at him.

"Are you in pain? Do you want anything? Should I get the nurse?" Flack felt like there was something he should do.

She just slowly shook her head no to each of his offerings. It was enough that he was there with her. He held her hand again and stroked her hair till she fell back asleep.

Mac arrived soon after and he & Flack talked outside her door. Flack was excited to tell him that she had woke up and looked good. Mac assured him that he would tell the others and then informed Flack of the latest in the case, including that Dunbrook Jr. was doing fine, before leaving. "You leaving, too, Don?"

"Yeah. But you go ahead, I've gotta get my coat."

"G'night, Don."

"G'night, Mac." Back in Angell's room Flack picked up his jacket, then made himself as comfortable as a long-legged guy like him could be in a loveseat. With his legs hanging over one end and his neck kinked at the other, he pulled his jacket up over his shoulders, and went to sleep.


	8. Chapter 8

PAY UP (Runner's version) - Part 8 of 11

The next morning (Friday) Flack is awoke by the sound of the shift change at the ICU nurse's station. He needed a shower, a shave, some coffee, and to figure out how to get this kink out of his neck from sleeping on that loveseat. But all that would wait a few more minutes because Jess was stirring. Right back to talking to her softly and stroking her hair,... now this is how he preferred starting his day.

Soon Dr. Rawles comes in and needs to talk to Jess about her injuries. Flack kisses her goodbye and heads for a few hours at home.

After Dr. Rawles explained to Angell why she had been sedated she backtracks to the shooting, which Angell remembers well. "Your shoulder injury was a thru & thru, and aside from the bruised and collapsed lung, a standard repair procedure. But your abdominal would was very complicated," she began as she recounted the numbers... 1 hole in, 5 fragments, 19 lacerations. "Those fragments ping-ponged around your insides pretty good, Detective. Not only was your intestinal track full of holes, but your spleen and a kidney were also damaged."

Angell just laid there, taking it all in. "Is the damage permanent?" She finally asked in a tone barely above a whisper.

"It's too early to tell. Dr. Peteson and I both agree that your spleen shouldn't be an issue, but we'll be keeping a close eye on your kidney function to track your progress."

"And?..." Angell asked, sensing that there was something more.

"Do you have children, Detective?"

That was an odd question. "No." she replied, almost tentatively.

"There is one more thing. One of the fragments went thru your left ovary."

Jess already knew where this was going.

"We had to remove it. I'm sorry. If you already had children or were done having children, this probably wouldn't be a big deal. But since you have none yet, it probably is."

Angell looked away, not know what to say or how to respond. She hadn't gotten that far in life yet, she wasn't ready to think about having a baby.

"You still have one ovary left, so this doesn't have to mean you can't have children some day." Dr. Rawles could tell by Angell's silence that she was processing. "I just wanted to assure you that I don't have to reveal the specifics of your injuries in my report. A damaged spleen is one thing, but a lost ovary is probably something you'd prefer to keep private, I assume."

Angell looked back at Dr. Rawles and nodded. This was something she really didn't want her co-workers to know about, or her father, or Flack, at least for now.

"I understand, Detective. The report will say only that there were 'extensive internal injuries'."

Angell had dozes off and on till her dad & brother Josh came. Despite her heavy pain meds, she was able to visit some and even recount some of the doctors report to them. A few hours later Flack returns as Mr. Angell & Josh are leaving. "Nice to see your dad smiling, Jess." He said, then fills her in on how they caught the perps. Flack stays till it is time for her to be taken for some tests.


	9. Chapter 9

PAY UP (Runner's version) - Part 9 of 11

Flack actually had a bit of a smile on his face as he rode the elevator up to the ICU. This evening's visit brought a new sense of confidence that Jess was going to be okay now. He usually walked up to her door slowly, finding it easier to see her with all those tubes and monitors if he eased into it. This he still did, but this time he notices that Jess' covers have all been kicked off. Being careful not to set off any of the alarms connected to her, he begins gently covering her back up. With her eyes still shut Jess squirms in protest. Even without much fight in her right now, it was obvious that she did not want the covers on. Flack spoke softly to her, letting her know it was him and reached to caress her face like he always did. It only took a moment for him to figure out what was wrong and call for the nurse.

"She shouldn't be that hot." Flack insisted.

"You're right, detective. I'll be right back." She returns in moments to take Jess' temp while Nurse Abigail checked the rest of the vitals and made notes on a computer screen. Abigail starts for the door.

"You're not leaving are you? Aren't you gonna do something for her?" Flack asked rather sternly.

"Yes, Detective, I am going to do something for her. I'm going to go call her doctor."

"102. That's not what I wanted to see." Dr. Peterson commented.

"Why does she have a fever?" Flack inquired.

"Infection is the most likely culprit."

"But you've got her on all those meds. Antibiotics."

Dr. Rawles walks in. "Starting the party without me?"

"Somethings wrong." Flack blurts out.

"I can see that." Rawles replies calmly as she joins Peterson at the computer monitor to check on Angell's vitals. "Her test results aren't back yet."

"You want me to call down to the lab and see if I can expedite things?" Abigail offered.

"I'll go." Dr. Peterson offered. "We need those results now." Peterson leaves, passing Mac who had been listening outside Angell's door. Mac enters and tries to calm Flack down.

"She's still got a long way to go, Mac. She didn't need a setback like this." Flack said, visibly upset and beginning to pace.

It would be another 2 hours before Rawles returned to the ICU, test results in hand. "It's not an infection." She said flatly and shaking her head.

"What now?" asked Flack.

"We need to do broader testing. Check for a wider range of things."

Flack turns to Mac, "You've got a lab. Can't you do anything to help her?"

Mac agrees to see what he can do, while the hospital is doing the same. Anything to help Angell and anything to calm Flack down. Mac calls Adam to tell him a blood sample is on it's way to the lab, then stays with Flack till early morning.

It's now late Saturday morning as Mac walks into the lab, and spots a bleary-eyed Adam who had been there all night running test after test to help find out what is wrong with Angell.

"Wha'd you find, Adam?" Mac asks, handing him coffee.

Hawkes follows Mac as far as the door to listen in.

"A lot." A grateful Adam begins as he rubs his eyes with one hand and raises the coffee cup with the other, sips the hot coffee, then explains that he found some unusual trace in Angell's blood, Trace-X, so he tested Dunbrooks as well and found the same Trace-X, but in a lower quantity. Both of them conclude that Trace-X could only be in the bloodstreams of both of them if it was on the bullet that went thru her and into him.

"That would explain her fever." Hawkes says, stepping the rest of the way into the room. "Her body is trying to fight off the Trace-X, but with it in her bloodstream that won't be easy to do."

Mac calls Lindsay and orders her to test the 50c bullets they recovered for all trace evidence. He hangs up and says, "If we're right, and Trace-X did come from the bullets, that could lead us to a primary location and maybe a bigger recover."

"You want me to go help Lindsay?" Hawkes offers.

"Yes. But not till after you've called Dr. Rawles at the hospital for a doctor-to-doctor chat about what Adam found so they can begin treating Angell for this."

"Will do, Mac." Hawkes says as he picks up the phone.

Mac turns to Adam, "You did a great job, Adam."

"Thanks, boss." Adam replies with a tired smile and grateful for the compliment.

"Now go home and get some sleep."

***Note to readers: okay, this is where I'm a bit lost. Not being a lab rat I'm not sure what kind of trace to say they found, but the idea is that something was on the bullets which is how it ended up in Angell & Dunbrook's blood, making Angell sick ('cause she got most of it). So, I'm just referring to it as "Trace-X". And Trace-X on the bullets is also how the CSI's track down the primary location of their stash and recover it. Back to the story...

As a nurse administers meds via Angell's IV, Dr. Rawles explains to Flack & Mr. Angell that it's going to take a while before Trace-X is out of her bloodstream and they see any improvement, especially with her temp now up to 103.

Flack gets a call from Danny. He's located the source of Trace-X and a possible primary location to the 50c stash of bullets. Flack fills Mr. Angell in before heading out.

The bust is a huge success and gets lots of illegal ammo off the streets. Mr. Angell and his son Josh watch Flack give a press conference on the tv in the ICU's waiting area. It's a proud moment for any cop family, but Mr. A feels a little something special watching Flack, it was almost a 'proud father' kind of feeling.


	10. Chapter 10

PAY UP (Runner's version) - Part 10 of 11

By Saturday evening Mr. & Mrs. Flack had arrived. They were only allowed in the ICU's waiting area, but made it just in time to see their son give a press conference on tv. "Excuse me," said Mr. A., "do you know him?"

"Oh, yes, that's our son Donald, Jr." said a very proud Mrs. Flack.

Mr. A. introduced himself and his son Josh. They have a pleasant visit while Josh excuses himself to go back in with his sister.

"It just won't be the same tomorrow without Jessica there." Said Mrs. Flack.

"I don't follow you, Mrs. Flack"

"Oh, please call me Ruth. I was just saying that tomorrow just won't seem quite the same without Don & Jessica there."

"I didn't realize you knew my daughter."

"Oh, yes." replied Mr. Flack, "Don's been bringing Jessica over for dinner every-other-Sunday for quite a while now."

"It's the most faithful Don's been about Sunday dinners in a long time." added Mrs. Flack with a look of satisfaction.

"Your daughter is a lovely lady and such a dedicated officer." said Mr. Flack, a retired NYPD officer himself.

The conversation quickly turned to their family trees and how Don & Jessica had both followed on that path themselves. But in the back of his mind Mr. A was finally seeing the bigger picture of Flack's relationship with his daughter.

Flack gets off the elevator to the unmistakable sound of his mother's voice. "Mom?" he questions poking his head into the ICU's waiting area.

"Oh, Don, we're so glad you're here." she replies as she greets him with a hug.

"I thought you two weren't coming till tomorrow." Flack says stepping into the room.

"Decided we couldn't wait. We just had to come and see how Jessica was doing." said Mr. Flack as he gives his son the 'ol manly pat on the back.

"I brought you something to eat, dear." offers Mrs. Flack in that concerned motherly tone she had at times like these. Flack takes the still warm Tupperware container she offers him. "I should have brought more." says Mrs. Flack as she gives her son the once-over. "You've lost weight!" she adds, with a look of concern.

"Mom,..."

"You're mother's right, Don. You have." Agrees Mr. Flack.

"I'm fine,... I'm fine." says Flack, holding up a hand almost as in surrender as he slowly backs up. "And right now I'm gonna go in and see Jess." he adds backing his way thru the doorway, Tupperware in hand.

Mrs. Flack shakes her head slowly as she steps up to the window by the door and joins her husband in watching their son go around the nurse's station and into Jessica's room. "He hasn't been eating." She says as she turns back towards her husband. "I mean, look at him." The tone in her voice bordering on being upset.

"I know,Ruth. You're right. But he'll be fine." Mr. Flack puts his arm around his wife. "He'll be okay, as soon as he knows Jessica is going to be okay."

"Well of course she's going to be okay." Mrs. Flack responds very matter-of-fact as she pulls back just a bit. "She just needs a little more time is all." This she adds to try to make Mr. Angell feel better.

Josh returns to the waiting area in time to give Mr. & Mrs. Flack an update on Jessica before they leave, so Mr. Angell heads to his daughter's room to join Flack. Flack hears him enter, but doesn't take his eyes off Jess. Mr. Angell puts his jacket on the loveseat and sees the Tupperware container on the table.

"Smells good, Don. You should eat" Said Mr. A.

"Still 103. I wish the meds would work faster." Flack says, still looking at Jess and not even realizing he was still stroking the back of her hand.

"Lasagna. I'll bet it's lasagna. My mother used to make the best lasagna."

"So I get lasagna while Jess gets an IV. Doesn't seem fair."

"None of this is fair, Don."

Angell begins to stir and both men wait anxiously to see if she'll wake up.

"Your folks sure are nice people." Mr. A says to break the silence and now standing on the opposite side of the bed, looking over Jessica to Flack.

"Looks like Jess & I both lucked out that way."

"Thanks." Replies Mr. A accepting the compliment. "So, I finally learned where my daughter eats every-other-Sunday. Maybe your mother can put a few pounds on her." Both men try to laugh. "So, how long have you two been seeing each other?"

Flack smiles, still without taking his eyes off Jess. "Seven months." She stirs a bit more. "Two weeks." She begins to open her eyes. "Three days. Hey, sleepy head." Flack lowers to make eye contact with her. "How do you feel?" He feels her warm face. "Your dad's here."

Angell is awake long enough to take in some water, find out what day it is (something she's been having trouble keeping track of), be told about Trace-X, get an update on her test results from the nurse, and learn about the bust that went down (always the cop, even when sick).

Seeing her awake, even for a while, made both Flack & Mr. Angell feel better about her prognosis and recovery. With Angell back asleep the men start talking about her care after she leaves the hospital.

"You know, Don," begins Mr. A, "she's going to need a lot of time and care for a while."

"Yeah." Agrees Flack as he nods his head.

"I just assumed she'd be coming home, where I could take care of her. (long pause) But, I sure could use some help." Mr. A slowly smiles a little.

"How's that?" Flack asks, now looking up at him.

"Got plenty of rooms. Heck, I've got so many empty rooms, even your folks could come visit her real easy." Now Flack smiles. "Wouldn't wanna break that every-other-Sunday thing you two've got going on with them."

"They'd like that. They really think a lot of Jess."

Flack is glad Mr. A knows how much he cares for his daughter. He'll gladly take a bed in the guest room as long as he's under the same roof as Jess.

As Mr. Angell starts to leave he shoves the Tupperware container in Flacks hand. "Here. Eat this." he says with stern look on his face yet just a hint of a smile, then walks out the door.

Flack pulls a chair up next to Angell's bed and takes out the plastic fork his mother so wisely put in. He puts it down, then picks up her hand instead. Running his fingers between hers and following the veigns on the back of her slender hand, all while staring off in a daze. He always liked her small delicate hands and the intricate tattoo work around her wrist, which he begins to trace with his other hand.

It was the beginning of her shift and Nurse Zoe walked into Angell's room quietly as she always did. She knew she'd find Detective Flack there but always hoping he'd be sleeping, just because he needed it.

Flack looked up from his dazed state to greet Zoe with a tired smile as he continued caressing Jess' wrist with his thumb.

"That's a pretty tattoo." She said as she taking the stethescope from around her neck. "Is that a charm bracelet?"

"Yeah." he says, watching her add notes to Jess' chart on the computer. "It matches the one her grandmother wore."

"Oh, that's sweet." replies Zoe.

"Jess loved it so much that she had it tattooed on."

It got quiet there in Angell's care unit for a bit, as both Flack & Zoe each had busy minds at the moment.

Flack was thinking about the details he'd just left out... like how her mother had interited the bracelet after Jess' grandmother died, then added 5 charms of her own, one for each of her children, but Jess would never get to wear it because her father had insisted it be burried with his wife. Jess had agreed at the time because it was so hard to see her father grieve like that and she knew it would be even harder on him to see her wear it. Having it tattooed on was not only her way of wearing that bracelet, but remembering and honoring her mother.

This was just one of the many stories Mr. Angell had told him about Jess there in the hospital.

Zoe was thinking about her grandfather, an NYPD officer that had been killed in the line of duty many years ago and died right there in the hospital she now worked in.

As Zoe put her stethescope back around her neck and headed for the door she said, "Get some sleep, Detective Flack."

"Will do, Zoe." Flack he went right back to stroking Jess' fingers and soon slipped into that familiar state of daze. His mind like a pendolum at that moment, pleased at getting to see Jess' beautiful brown eyes open earlier, yet a little disappointed in himself. He loved Jess. He knew it and hoped she knew it. He often called her 'sweetheart' when they were alone and they both knew they were very special to the other, but he had never actually come right out and said those three words to her. He regretted it now, not only because she could have died never hearing it from his own lips, but because she deserved to hear it. He would have to rectify his shortcoming as soon as Jess left the hospital and the time was right. She would never have to wonder again if he loved her. He was going to make sure of that.

Releasing her had for a bit, he leaned back in his chair and began to contemplate their future. Surely they had a future together. He couldn't imagine his life without her in it, then he found himself wondered if they would ever get married. Some day. He hoped so.

"Hmm?", he wondered to himself as he leaned forward in his chair again and picking her hand back up... some day I'm going to have to figure out what size ring she wears?

Flack was soon back in that familiar state of daze, but this time, with just a hint of a smile on his face.


	11. Chapter 11

PAY UP (Runner's version) - Part 11 of 11

It's Sunday morning and once again Flack is awoke by the sound of the shift change at the nurse's station. Nurse Zoe was doing one last check on Angell's vitals before her graveyard shift was over. "You're going to be happy, Detective. Her fever is down." she said as she left the room. He was relieved at the news. It was one more step to Angell being better.

The noise of the shift change had stirred Angell as well. She awoke to see an aide bringing Flack some coffee. "Have they gotten to know you that well around here?" She attempted to joke with him in a slightly stronger voice.

"Maybe I can get them to put a double-latte in your IV." Flack responded, trying to joke back because he didn't want her to feel guilty about being in the hospital so long or that he'd been there almost as much as her.

She is able to semi-sit up and drink some more water. They visit, although with her half asleep at times, till Dr. Rawles comes in late morning. "You're trying to get out of here, aren't you, Detective Angell?"

"The sooner the better." Angell replies.

"Keep it up and it won't be long. Your blood work is looking much better & your temp is on it's way down. Of course you realize it's going to be a while before we can tell how well those lacerations healed." Angell shakes her head to acknowledge understanding. "An aide will be in in a few minutes to get you out for a walk. You need to start moving. In fact, you're going to move right out of here."

"How's that, Doctor?" Asked Flack.

"You no longer need to be here in the ICU, you're being moved to a room later today. I'll be back tomorrow, and if all continues to go this well, we'll talk about sending you home. In the meantime, we're going to get you used to your new diet." Dr. Rawles goes on to explain that food, even soft food, would not be a good idea while her intestines are full of sutures that need to heal. Angell would be dining on Gatorade (w/liquid vitamins & minerals added) and protein smoothies for at least a week. "See you tomorrow, Detectives." Dr. Rawles leaves.

Angell turns to Flack, "Can I get that double-latte now?"

With Angell awake more, she is able to enjoy some of her visitors. Danny & Lindsay, Mac, Stella, Adam and Sheldon all take turns throughout Sunday. Angell was glad to see them all, especially Adam, so she could thank him for donating blood for her surgery and his important role in finding out what was making her sick.

Her dad, brothers, and aunt Gail all came on Monday. "We're sure looking forward to having you back at home, Jessica." Her dad says as he admires her new diggs.

"We're gonna take good care of you." Her aunt adds. "We even stopped by your apartment and got you some comfy clothes for the ride home."

Late Monday Dr. Rawles stops in as promised and is pleased enough with Angell's progress and test results, as well as the arrangements that have been made for her care, that she agrees to discharge her the next morning.

Tuesday morning a nurse's aid helps Angell shower & dress in baggy sweats, then shows her how to change her bandages. Her phone rings, "Your ride is here, Detective." She says.

Nurse Zoe showed up moments later with a wheelchair. Her graveyard shift in the ICU was long over, but she wanted to stay and see Detective Angell off. "I'll take her down." She offered with a smile.

Although Zoe never told Angell about her grandfather it was now her honor to wheel Detective Angell out of the same hospital he had died in. Zoe stops Angell's wheelchair at the ICU on their way out, so she can thank the many people who helped take care of her, then takes the staff elevator down.

Their first view of the lobby is of a man assessing wether or not both he and the large boquet of balloons he is carrying will both fit into the already almost full elevator. "I think I'd better wait for the next one, folks." he said. As he backs away from the doors he turns and sees Angell. "Detective Angell?" He asks.

"Yes." she replies as Zoe slows down.

"I'm Robert Dunbrook. I was just..."

"I know who you are, Mr. Dunbrook." she says with a polite nod.

"I wanted to send these earlier, but apparently the ICU doesn't allow flowers." He hands her a very large arraingement, which she manages to rest on her lap and ballance still using just the one arm.

"Wow. Um,...thank you."

"Looks like you're getting out of this place." She nods. "Glad I caught you before you left. You got hurt protecting my son. And I, uh,..."

"I'm glad he was found safe." Angell said, realizing he was struggling for words.

"Your ride is waiting, Detective." Zoe interupts, for which Angell is grateful.

"Oh, yes, I'm sorry. Just one more thing before you go." he says as he hands several issues of his newspaper and the balloon boquet to Zoe. "These contain articles about everything that's happened since the shooting. I thought you might like to catch up on your reading while you're recouperating."

"I'll do that, Mr. Dunbrook. Thank you." she says as Zoe begins to push her away.  
Mr. Dunbrook silently smiles and nods as they each go separate directions.

Angell took a deep breath of relief when the large automatic doors slid open and she was wheeled outside to the fresh air and her awaiting ride. Flack exits the car to come around and open the door for her. "Don?" she says obviously surprised.

"Will I do for your chauffeur today?"

"Of corse. It's just that, I, um, I'm going to my dad's house, Don."

"I know." He says kneeling down close to her. "I'm going with you."

There it was again... that smile he enjoyed seeing every morning.


End file.
